Early Warning?

[DPM111]

I'm in my early 50s and very deconditioned and have decided to get on a long term exercise program.  My first day I walked 10 minutes and was completely winded.

My doctor says my heart sounds OK and EKG is normal, but the size of my heart is at the high end of "normal".  He was a little concerned, but thought that exercise was the right thing to do even if I was in the earliest stages of an enlarged heart (cardiomyopathy).

Can an enlarged heart result from just being chronically deconditioned?  Can it be reversed by exercise?  Should I do more tests to look into the condition of my heart?

[DPM111]

Thank-you Dr. Conaway.  I also some some periods of mild tachycardia (pulse of 100 10 120), which appears to be due to generalized anxiety disorder.  That has been managed fairly well, and I don't know if that can lead to damage.

[Darcy Green Conaway, MD]

If  your doctor is concerned that your heart is enlarged then an echocardiogram is in order. It uses ultrasound to assess the function of the left ventricle (the pumping chamber) and also allows for assessment of chamber dimensions. I am unclear why your doctor thinks you may have early cardiomyopathy but if your heart appears large it should be further evaluated as you may warrant very aggressive medical management. Conversely, it may all be due to deconditioning-- to answer your question, deconditioning does not normally result in a cardiomyopathy.